Dan Brown has been selected as the new football coach at Monterey High, Brown said.
Brown has most recently been the coach at Wilcox, taking the Chargers to the section Division II semifinals where they fell to Mitty. He was also the coach at Del Mar, Sobrato and Willow Glen.
“It’s a heck of an opportunity,” Brown said. “We were looking for an opportunity to relocate because of my youngest daughter. I coached for one year at Willow Glen and (Monterey) kind of reminds me a little bit of the Willow Glen community. It’s like it was meant to be; I like the new athletic director Shaumbe Wright and Jared Bell who will be coming up from frosh-soph to help me and Marcie (Plummer) is a good principal. I felt a good connection.”
Brown’s daughter, Cami, is 13 and will be in the eighth grade in the fall. She has played a variety of sports, though the new Monterey coach thinks she’ll focus on volleyball and track and field.
Monterey went 8-3 last season under former coach Tom Newton, who resigned following the season. It went 4-2 in the tough MBL-Gabilan, which includes San Benito, Salinas and Palma among others. Anticipated to return at quarterback this season for the Toreadores is star athlete Carter Aldrete, who is in the midst of trying to make the USA Baseball 18U national team.
Brown, 52, was a football teammate of NFL coach Marty Mornhinhweg at Oak Grove when Mike Holmgren (Green Bay Packers, Seattle Sehawks) was the offensive coordinator. In addition to football, he played basketball and baseball for the Eagles. Brown also played football at Hayward State (now Cal State East Bay) where he was an NCAA Division All-American honorable mention pick after leading the conference in interceptions. He was the team captain and team MVP.
Brown said his family will re-locate to the Monterey Peninsula soon. He will be a physical education teacher at Monterey.
Informed of the news, Wilcox athletic director Woody Freitas was delighted for Brown.
“It’s good news,” Freitas said. “But we’ll miss his passion and high energy."
Said Monterey principal Plummer of the school's new coach: "What he brings is a wealth of knowledge of the game, an understanding of the region and a long history of excellence both in the educational environment and on the field. He is a man of excellent character and a great role model for our student athletes. We are very fortunate to have Dan Brown join the MHS family."
